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HOWE are you?Interview by John "Bo Bo" Bollenberg
 For The Ladder we virtually entered the studio without any material at all, so the six of us composed the material there and then. That is exactly how we used to work on The Yes Album, Fragile and Close To The Edge and these, for me, are still the best albums we ever made. Personally I would be thrilled if we could deliver Close To The Edge - The Sequel but I think this is no longer possible. The Yes Album, Fragile and Close To The Edge are the result of a very close collaboration of people who were much younger than they are today, of people who had a huge ambition.  Even if you would bring Bill Bruford, Rick Wakeman and Eddie Offord back together again, it would no longer have the 'chemistry' like we used to have. That's a fact we have to live with and whilst I love to play the 'old' stuff, I tremendously enjoy playing the new material as well. In the past we played very little of the latest studio output but this time around we will perform a lot from The Ladder plus the old favourites, of course. I can honestly understand that there are Yes fans out there who would love to see that we return to the more complex material. Yet the albums we deliver are not from a conveyor belt, it is not a car that we deliver but a one-off product, a piece of art that is very much a result of a certain period."
Steve has admitted it: it is the arrival of Fairburn that gave the band new wings, that gave new blood to the weak Yes formula. Unfortunately Fairburn died long before he could see the results of his efforts, so Yes will have to look elsewhere for a new producer. "First of all we are going to enjoy this tour as much as we can and then of course we'd have to look out for a new producer. I would love to work with Trevor Horn again [Howe also worked with Frankie Goes to Hollywood and Propaganda, two ZTT artists who were on Trevor Horn's label], yet I think he is not so keen anymore where producing is concerned. Billy Sherwood
With the track "Homeworld," Yes has entered the arena of the computer games. At first glance it looks like pure manipulation to enter a territory strictly reserved for the younger generation. "Call it cross-marketing," says Steve Howe. "Billy is obsessed with PC-games and Jon thought that we should approach this medium from an ethical point of view. Games as such are too important to be ignored. When an opportunity was given to work on a new Sierra game, of course we went ahead with it. It opens new perspectives for both parties. Recently, Yes' music was also used in some films. You can hear "Roundabout" in Outside Providence and "All Good People' is used in Dick. Strangely enough, Yes has never been asked to write music specifically for film. Personally I have been asked to write a soundtrack on a couple of occasions but in the end it was never used. It's such a strange world where thousands of musicians mingle, so it's very unique when they finally choose your music for the film. Of course for Yes it would be brilliant to do a soundtrack because I think our music is very symbolic. Just look at Roger Dean's landscapes! One time were were asked to write the music for a film about the Winter Olympics but we didn't do it. I think Rick Wakeman did White Rock instead. I'm more into the kind of soundtrack Ry Cooder wrote for Paris, Texas. I also adore the composer John Williams."
Isn't the creative process killed by the Internet, interactive CD-ROMs, courses on video, master classes? "On the contrary. I think all of these possibilities will even enhance the creative process. When I started out, there were hardly any books, so you had to learn everything by yourself. It took me years before I had found my own 'sound'. During my stints with the Syndicats, In Crowd, Bodast and Tomorrow, I had been looking for my own identity and once I joined Yes, I finally found it. Don't ask me how! Through the company Beyond Sound I have now released a double CD-ROM called Steve Howe Interactive where, next to a bunch of unreleased live 'footage,' you also get tutoring for new guitarists. I'm very happy with the result." Although Steve Howe owns a huge guitar collection, he remains loyal to Martin where acoustic guitars are concerned. "From the moment I saw Elvis Presley on one of his legendary sleeves with a Martin 'round his neck, I thought of Martin as an incredible instrument. When I found out that my heroes Lonnie Donegan and Paul Simon were all using the same instrument, I simply HAD to have a Martin and that was an 00-18 model. Over time, I have had several 00-18's, a SOM-45, various ukuleles, a C-style mandolin and even a 0-28 from 1875! Because of my loyalty to Martin and my input for guitar music, Martin has decided to release a Steve Howe 'signature' model. The Martin 00-18SH has only been released in 250 numbered copies and you can find my signature between the 18th, 19th and 20th frets. The guitar isn't cheap ($3000), yet a lot of the profits will go towards the Save the Children organization. The guitar is built from a 00-18 model, yet modified for my own needs. Thus they have used MSP4100 Phosphor Bronze strings, amongst others. It's a nice guitar, with a wonderful sound and it's really an honour and privilege for me to be able to put my name onto it!" The band Tomorrow did put a decent amount of psychedelic elements into their music. In December '68 they shared the stage with Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. Does Howe miss these elements although one can hear some Indian influences in the new Yes composition "Nine Lives?" "Tomorrow was a nice experience, although very much a reflection of its time. During my stint with GTR we also used some kotos, yet the true psychedelica went hand in hand with the adoration for the Maharisha, something I have drawn a lot of strength from. On The Ladder we have been able to integrate these ethnic elements within the arrangements, yet it has never been the idea to include the 'floating' sound from the psychedelic era into the music of Yes. Maybe I'll be using more of that on one of my future solo albums, who knows?" A lot of questions remain. Questions about the joint album between Howe and Annie Haslam, his 'guitar and orchestra' project. Is Yes a fulltime occupation or will there be more time for activities such as GTR or Explorer's Club? Maybe Steve Howe should slow down a bit and explore the music of Spock's Beard and Flower Kings so that both of these 'unknown bands for the masses' can join Yes on tour. It would indeed be a fantastic poster and I'm convinced that a lot of 'unknown' Yes fans would be very enthusiastic indeed. In the meantime the most important word in the dictionary remains YES! Discography
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 © Copyright 1999, 2000 Progressive World/John Bollenberg photo (c) 1999 Robin Kauffman |
did a good job on the 
I tell Steve that I find it very difficult to enjoy the typical Wakeman runs done by 